Meaning & use
trade fair
Last updated
UK/ˈtreɪd ˌfeə/
US/ˈtreɪd ˌfer/
Meaning
nouncountable
a large event where companies in the same industry show their products and meet buyers
Grammar: Countable: use 'a trade fair' or 'trade fairs'.
Patterns
- at a trade fair
- go to a trade fair
- hold a trade fair
Our company will have a stand at the international trade fair in Berlin.
She met several new suppliers at the trade fair last month.
Trade fairs are a good way to see what competitors are doing.
Word forms
| plural | trade fairs |
|---|
Common combinations
- attend a trade fair
- We usually attend two or three trade fairs a year.
- international trade fair
- The international trade fair attracts buyers from all over the world.
- trade fair stand
- They spent hours setting up their trade fair stand.
- at a trade fair
- I ran into an old colleague at a trade fair in Chicago.
Synonyms and how they differ
- exhibition
- Exhibition is a more general word and can be for art or history, while a trade fair is specifically for business and industry.
- trade show
- Trade show is very similar and common in American English; trade fair is more common in British English.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'trade fair' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A trade fair is a business event where companies show products, so presenting software fits. The others describe a market, a library, or clothing, which are not trade fairs.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “trade fair”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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